Riders of traditional snowboards are secured to the board by bindings or straps. When the snowboard is pointed directly down the slope with its bottom surface flat on the surface of the snow, it will quickly gather speed. The only way to effectively slow down a traditional snowboard is to aim the board across the slope and tilt it so that the edge of the board abrades the surface of the snow. This is a difficult maneuver for a novice snowboarder to perform without falling and risking injury. Thus, a problem with traditional snowboards is that novices must learn to perform turns in order to control their rate of descent. However, turning is a difficult maneuver to master and many novices are injured attempting to turn the snowboard to slow it down.
Another problem with existing snowboards is the necessity of securing the rider's feet to the board with bindings that must be used with large, generally uncomfortable boots. Although bindings and boots are cumbersome, riders of conventional snowboards are forced to use them to perform turns in order to slow down. Furthermore, because the bindings secure both feet to the board, it is difficult to move on a flat surface. To do so, the rider must manually disengage one binding to release a foot in order to push off on the snow, which leaves one foot secured in the binding bent at an uncomfortable, unnatural angle. Thus, a traditional snowboard's requirement of bindings and boots can make snowboarding an unpleasant experience for many snowboarders, particularly novices unaccustomed to using them.
Yet another problem with existing snowboards is that the riders are forced to stand in a fixed, sideways stance. Not only is this stance awkward and uncomfortable, it limits the rider's field of vision. Skiers, by contrast, have a better field of vision because they stand with both feet facing down the hill.
A further problem with traditional snowboards is that they cannot be ridden safely without bindings. As explained above, a rider of a traditional snowboard cannot slow down without performing turns, and turns cannot be performed without bindings. Furthermore, if the rider fell off the snowboard, nothing would prevent it from sliding down the hill without the rider, posing a serious danger to people below.
Attempts at solving some of these problems have been made. For example, a braking device for a snowboard is found in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0036257. However, the device disclosed therein suffers from at least two disadvantages. First, the position of the brake is fixed and cannot be modulated while the user is riding the snowboard. Second, the brake blade will tend to clog with snow and ice, eventually rendering it ineffective.
Another attempt at providing a braking device for a snowboard-like apparatus is found in U.S. Pat. No. 6,935,640. However, this device is also prone to build-up of snow and ice that hinders operation of the mechanism.
Yet another existing braking device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,139,031. This device, however, is operated by an elongated handle mounted in front of the rider. One disadvantage of this device is the danger posed by the handle during a fall. If the rider falls forward, the rider's abdomen, chest, neck, or head is likely to strike the handle, possibly resulting in serious injury.
Accordingly, there is a need for a snowboard with a braking device that is not prone to clogging with snow or ice and that the user can modulate while riding without using a potentially dangerous handle. There is also a need for a snowboard that does not require the use of bindings so that the rider is not limited to a single fixed stance defined by the location of the bindings. Finally, there is a need for an automatically deployable braking device that would prevent a bindingless snowboard from sliding uncontrollably down the slope without the rider.